The present invention relates to mixing aids for supersonic gas flows. More specifically, this invention relates to mixing aids which provide pressure differentials and resulting optimal flow vortices within the gas flows which are to be mixed thereby enhancing mixing of the flows.
The need for enhancing the mixing of supersonic gas flows is becoming increasingly more important with the development of combined-cycle engines, more advanced rocket engines and chemical laser systems.
In the past, rocket engines typically utilized impinging injection schemes for thrust vector control involving injection of a supersonic secondary fluid flow in a direction normal or nearly normal to a supersonic primary fluid flow. However, such injection schemes do not provide production of thrust, from supersonic secondary flow, which is required in modern combined-cycle and advanced rocket engines.
Other injection schemes include a secondary stream being parallel to the primary stream, with the mixing of the streams governed only by the velocity differential between the streams. However, these schemes do not induce entrainment of one stream into the other in short distances.